Car bombs kill 15 students, 10 Houthi rebels in Yemen

Blasts hit school bus carrying primary schoolers near Shia gathering, killing 25, including at least 15 students

December 16, 2014 11:33AM ET

Two car bombs exploded south of the Yemeni capital city of Sanaa on Tuesday, hitting a school bus traveling near a Shia gathering and killing 25 people including at least 15 primary school students, a Shia group said.

The Shia rebel fighters, known as Houthis, blamed Al-Qaeda for the attack in the Radaa area of Baydah province, calling it "the ugliest crime against childhood." The group said the school bus was carrying female primary school students. The Houthis have made significant military advances in recent months, seizing control of the capital and other strategic cities.

It was not clear if the other 10 killed in the attack were Houthi fighters or civilians.

Local tribesmen said one of the cars targeted the home of a Houthi leader, Abdullah Idris, who is also a member of the General People's Congress Party of ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh. They said one of the car bombs rammed into the house while another hit a checkpoint near the house, killing the Houthis manning the checkpoint and also striking the passing school bus.

The tribesmen spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.

This is the second time Idris's house has been targeted since October. The Houthis and Al-Qaeda have been fighting in Radaa since the rebels overran the area in October.

The Associated Press

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/12/16/2-car-bombs-kill15students10rebelsinyemen.html